Greta Gerwig’s next big swing is officially coming into focus. Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew hits IMAX and a wide theatrical release globally on February 12, 2027, before arriving on Netflix on April 2, 2027—with IMAX-exclusive sneak previews starting a couple of days early, on February 10. Given how deeply The Chronicles of Narnia books are woven into multiple generations of readers across the world, this release is shaping up to be a genuine event—one built to be experienced across IMAX screens, regular theaters, and Netflix all at once.
Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew: Everything to Know About Greta Gerwig’s New Film?
The Chronicles of Narnia franchise is preparing to return to the big screen under Oscar-nominated director Greta Gerwig. Twenty-one years after the release of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Netflix’s new adaptation titled Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew promises to explore corners of the fantasy world created by CS. Lewis, who had never found space in previous film adaptations. Between stylistic innovations and controversial casting choices—such as Meryl Streep’s voice of Aslan—an exclusive image published by Empire Magazine showed one of the most evocative and symbolic places in the literary saga.
What’s the Film About?
The official logline keeps things fairly simple: Gerwig, who wrote and directed the film, brings C.S. Lewis’s The Magician’s Nephew to the screen for the first time, in a sweeping adventure built to invite dreamers of every age into witnessing the actual creation of Narnia.
It’s worth pausing on that “first time” part—despite The Chronicles of Narnia having been adapted multiple times over the decades, this particular book, which tells the origin story of Narnia itself, has never made it to screen before now.
Who’s in the Cast?
The film pairs two newcomers, David McKenna and Beatrice Campbell, with a genuinely stacked supporting cast: Emma Mackey, Carey Mulligan, Ciarán Hinds, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Denise Gough, and Susan Wokoma, alongside Daniel Craig and Meryl Streep in prominent roles.
What Do the First-Look Photos Show?
The images released so far offer a glimpse of the Wood Between the Worlds, the mysterious realm connecting different universes within Lewis’s mythology. They also introduce our two young leads, Digory (McKenna) and Polly (Campbell), along with Daniel Craig playing Digory’s magician uncle, Andrew, and Emma Mackey stepping into the role of a strikingly glamorous, dangerous Jadis. One behind-the-scenes shot also catches Gerwig herself on set alongside McKenna, offering an early look at her hands-on approach to building this world.
Who’s Composing the Score?
The film’s original score comes from Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt, the same duo behind the music for Gerwig’s Barbie, with George Drakoulias handling music supervision.
What Gerwig Has Said About the Project
Gerwig has been vocal about how personal this project is to her. “Working with Netflix to bring this film to life has been extraordinary, and IMAX continues to be an incredible partner,” she said. “I cannot wait for people to see the film in theaters on February 12 and on Netflix on April 2.”
She’s also spoken at length about her lifelong connection to the source material, describing how she fell in love with the book’s premise as a child—the idea of a cosmic lion singing the world of Narnia into existence—long before she ever imagined making films herself. She’s credited Lewis’s work with shaping her belief in magic, hidden worlds, and the idea that wonder is available to anyone, not just extraordinary people, calling the experience of adapting the book “the honor of a lifetime.”
The C.S. Lewis Company has echoed that sentiment, praising how fully Gerwig has embraced Lewis’s world and the warmth she’s brought to the adaptation, expressing excitement about introducing Narnia to a new generation of audiences through her vision.
Who’s Behind the Scenes?
The film is produced by Mark Gordon, Amy Pascal, Vincent Sieber-Smith, and Gerwig herself, with Christine Crais serving as co-producer. Patricia Whitcher, Douglas Gresham, and Melvin Adams—representing the C.S. Lewis Estate—serve as executive producers. Netflix is handling domestic distribution, while Sony Pictures Entertainment will distribute the film internationally, outside North America.
The broader crew includes cinematographer Seamus McGarvey, production designer James Chinlund, costume designer Jacqueline Durran, and visual effects supervisor Paul Franklin, along with casting director Nina Gold and creature effects creative supervisor Neal Scanlan—a team suggesting real ambition on the technical and world-building side of the production.
A Quick Refresher on The Chronicles of Narnia
First published in 1955, The Magician’s Nephew tells the story of how the very first crossings between our world and Narnia began, laying the groundwork for the events of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, which had actually been published five years earlier, in 1950. Across all seven books, the series has sold more than 120 million copies in over 70 countries and has been translated into more than 60 languages.
The full series includes:
The Magician’s Nephew (1955)
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1950)
The Horse and His Boy (1954)
Prince Caspian: The Return to Narnia (1951)
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1952)
The Silver Chair (1953)
The Last Battle (1956)
C.S. Lewis himself remains one of the most influential writers and theologians of the 20th century. He taught English literature at Oxford until 1954, when he was unanimously elected to the Chair of Medieval and Renaissance Literature at Cambridge, a post he held until retirement. Beyond the Narnia series, Lewis wrote more than 30 books over his career, including widely read works like Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, and A Grief Observed—all of which, alongside the Narnia books, continue to draw in new readers every year.
When Can You See It?
Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew opens in theaters on February 12, 2027, and arrives on Netflix on April 2, 2027, with IMAX-only sneak previews starting February 10, 2027.